This article is part of Finding the Words, a newsletter that delivers practical insights on the day’s issues.

Good morning. It’s July 5 in America. A day after the United States marks Independence Day, many university admissions offices, students and their families, and businesses across the country are feeling ever more constrained by the latest round of Supreme Court rulings. 
 

On Thursday, June 29, the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions, rolling back decades of precedent and programs that have addressed racial inequality in education. On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled against President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan and later that same afternoon—on the final day of Pride Month in America— the court ruled in favor of a Colorado web designer in a free speech case that sets a new precedent for business owners to discriminate against the LGBTQI+ community, racial and religious minorities, the disability community, and women. 

In the wake of these decisions, universities, nonprofits, and businesses are asking, “What does this all mean, and where do we go from here?” 
 

There’s no denying the complexity of this moment and the reverberating effects these decisions will have on our country. Setbacks like these can rewind progress. They can also invite us to understand issues and their dividing lines more deeply, as Adam Harris wrote in the September 2021 edition of The Atlantic about affirmative action specifically: 

“Affirmative action has been a veil, obscuring the truth about American higher education. It has never been that hard to see through for those who tried but removing it could force the nation at large to recognize the disparities in our system and to search for better mechanisms to make college equitable.”   

These latest Supreme Court decisions do not mean the end of social progress. However, they do require us to work in service of better mechanisms for social progress. 

As we start on this new day, I’m devoting today’s column to a round-up from across the Mission Partners team, with five ways that we can power progress: 

• Let’s put our hiring practices to work. College just got more exclusive. So, let’s start making our hiring and retention practices more inclusive. If you run an organization that plans to hire, and you haven’t already done so, then remove the traditional four-year requirement from hiring. If institutions of higher education will become less diverse over time, then start now to build better mechanisms that will still drive diverse candidates to your organization and your industry at large. 

• Let’s put our money to work. The end of affirmative action may lead to fewer Black students at Harvard, but it need not mean fewer Black college students overall. So put your money where Black students are thriving: in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, college scholarships, and high-impact certification programs such as Per Scholas. You can also support nationally recognized organizations like the LaGrant Foundation, Thurgood Marshall College Fund, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, the American Indian College Fund, or APIA Scholars. All students should be in academic settings where they are supported and positioned to thrive. Let’s support the places doing this well. 

• Let’s put our values to work. If the values of diversity, equity, inclusivity, and mobility matter to you and your organization, then they should continue to matter. Consider new ways you can put your values to work in service of diversity, equity, inclusion, and mobility. Check out one way we’re doing this, through the Mission Partners’ Social Entrepreneur in Residence, which invests in the potential and growth of Black-led communications firms, while shifting capital to historically marginalized leaders in our sector.  

• Let’s put our votes to work. From gun violence to reproductive health to environmental protections and access to quality education, the stakes are high across several social issues. The people we elect are those who put judges in power, and the consequences of their decisions hold tremendous weight. Let’s use our votes to support greater representation on the Supreme Court and in courtrooms around the country. And if you’re not already, join us in giving paid time off on Election Day. 

• Let’s put our words to work. If ever there were a time to be explicit in our words, it’s now. Consider the many ways you can do just that, by penning a letter to your community, signing on to coalitions or public letters advocating for equitable policies, or by using your public platforms to amplify first-person perspectives that bring context to these cases. As writer Lisa Cron says, “If you can’t see it, you can’t feel it. And if you don’t feel it, you won’t be inspired to take action.”  

Bottom Line: As we start on this new day, it’s natural to feel the weight of decisions, particularly those that feel out of our control. It doesn’t need to mean all is lost, though. So, let’s take action and do some things.  

This post is part of the Finding The Words column, a series published every Wednesday that delivers a dose of communication insights direct to your inbox. If you like what you read, we hope you’ll subscribe to ensure you receive this each week.